Duke praises the healing hands of N Ireland
Prince William tells Belfast audience of the need to ‘come together … and work for the common good’
THE Duke of Cambridge has urged the public to “come together in times of trouble and work for the common good”, as he paid a visit to Northern Ireland to praise the work of those helping to overcome past divisions.
The Duke commended those working to bring divided communities closer, in comments that appeared to echo the sentiments of the Queen, his grandmother.
In a speech delivered during a twoday tour of Northern Ireland just over a month ahead of Brexit on March 29, he made careful reference to helping heal society’s divisions.
“From using sport to encourage people to talk openly about mental health to delivering services to children and young people who are at risk of entering care – the work you do transcends community divisions and is helping deliver a brighter future for everybody in Northern Ireland,” he told an audience at Belfast Empire Hall.
His remarks honoured Dame Mary Peters, who was yesterday appointed a Lady Companion of the Most Noble Or- der of the Garter by the Queen. “As we celebrate those who are leading that change for the next generation, it is also fitting that we recognise somebody else in the room this evening – who helped inspire so many of you in the first place.
“Mary Peters is not only one of the UK’S sporting legends, she’s also inspired generation after generation to come together in times of trouble and work for the common good – a lesson I hope many of us can learn from.”
His sentiments appeared to echo those delivered by the Queen at Christmas when she said: “Even with the most deeply held differences, treating the other person with respect and as a fellow human being is always a good first step towards greater understanding.”
In further comments to the Women’s Institute last month, the Queen praised “speaking well of each other and respecting different points of view; coming together to seek out the common ground; and never losing sight of the bigger picture”. The Duke’s remarks were delivered during a lively engagement, which saw him and his wife take a turn behind the bar pulling pints. Earlier in the day, they raced in Canadian kayaks, tried archery and clambered around a rope obstacle course at Roscor Youth Village, which provides activities for more than 2,500 children and young people referred by social services every year.
At their first engagement, at Windsor Park football stadium, the Duke and Duchess joined in dribbling drills and a match against primary school children.
In a discussion with mental health charity Ahead of the Game, the Duke asked about the resilience of the next generation growing up playing games where everyone is supposed to win.
The Duke, who is president of the Football Association, also accused clubs that fail to support the mental health of their players of a “dereliction of duty”, saying the habit of treating them like “financial assets” must change.
He warned that too many clubs simply drop young players if they fail to reach a required standard, with no thought as to how to support them after.
The Duke, along with the Duchess of Cambridge and Duke of Sussex, has been campaigning for years on mentalhealth issues. Saying sport was something he was “really interested in”, he said he was “trying to get to how we can use the playing field to tackle mental health, particularly in men”.
‘The work you do transcends community divisions and is helping deliver a brighter future for everybody in Northern Ireland’